What Capital Trees does

Capital Trees is a Richmond, Virginia-based nonprofit organization founded in 2010 that plans, plants, and maintains public greenspaces in partnership with the City of Richmond, Henrico County, corporations, and neighborhood associations. Its core work consists of designing and stewarding signature projects — notably the 5.5-acre Low Line (including Low Line Gardens and Low Line Green), Great Shiplock Park, Hotchkiss Green, and Canoe Run Park — using ecological design principles such as native plantings (90% native species across roughly 2,000 installed plants), stormwater bio-remediation infrastructure (capable of filtering 148,000 gallons of polluted runoff annually), and urban heat island mitigation.

The organization operates a public-private partnership model in which it acts as the long-term steward of municipal greenspaces, contributing planning expertise, volunteer mobilization, and ongoing maintenance that cities would otherwise struggle to fund directly. It serves three primary stakeholder groups: Richmond residents and visitors who use the greenspaces; municipal governments (City of Richmond, Henrico County) that co-fund and host projects; and corporate and community partners (Deloitte, Troutman Pepper Locke, Hunton Andrews Kurth, neighborhood associations, Groundwork RVA) that provide volunteer labor, sponsorships, and in-kind support.

Capital Trees is funded approximately 70% by individual donors — primarily through the Treekeepers Circle monthly recurring giving program and a broader base of 600+ donors — with the remainder coming from corporate event sponsorships (Earth Day Festival tiers) and public-private partnership contributions. Distribution is exclusively local (Richmond MSA), delivered through direct community engagement, free public access to greenspaces, guided tours, and private corporate volunteer workdays rather than through any product or software platform.

Name

Capital Trees

Legal name

Capital Trees

Website

https://capitaltrees.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Capital Trees is a Richmond, Virginia-based nonprofit founded in 2010 that plans, plants, and maintains public greenspaces — including the 5.5-acre Low Line — in partnership with the City of Richmond, Henrico County, corporate volunteers, and neighborhood associations, funded primarily by individual donors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Urban Greenspace Development & Stewardship

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312), Forest Nurseries and Gathering of Forest Products (1132)

SIC

Forestry (800)

akta.pro primary industry

Forestry & Reforestation (BPAGAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Urban & Community Reforestation / Street Tree Planting (AFAMACAL), Tree Planting & Establishment Services (Manual/Mechanized) (AFAMACAE), Tree Health Care (Diagnosis, Treatment, Fertilization) (HSAIADAD), Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services (BPAIACAI)

Keywords

• Urban greenspace development
• Public greenspace stewardship
• Native plant restoration
• Community volunteer programs
• Stormwater bio-remediation

Headquarters

HQ city

Richmond

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: The primary funding source at 70% of total funding. Includes one-time donations and recurring monthly contributions through the Treekeepers Circle program.
2. Corporate Sponsorships: Corporate sponsors for events and projects, including Earth Day Festival sponsors at various tiers (Grow, Gather, Seedling, Speaker, Canopy sponsors).
3. Public-Private Partnership Funding: Funding from public-private partnerships involving the City of Richmond, corporations, nonprofits, and foundations for project development and maintenance.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Capital Trees is a nonprofit organization that creates, plans, plants, and maintains public greenspaces in and around Richmond, Virginia through a public-private partnership model. Its work comprises signature restoration projects (The Low Line, Great Shiplock Park, Hotchkiss Green, Canoe Run Park, the 14th Street Initiative, and the Henrico County Reforestation Pilot) using native plantings and bio-remediating stormwater infrastructure, sustained by individual donors, corporate sponsors, and government partners with mobilized volunteer labor.

Product overview

Capital Trees is a non-profit organization dedicated to transforming Richmond, Virginia through the creation, planning, planting, and maintenance of public greenspaces. The organization does not offer a technology product or software platform. Instead, its offerings consist of environmental restoration projects, greenspace management services, and community engagement programs. Capital Trees operates as a public-private partnership model, bringing together the City of Richmond, corporations, nonprofits, foundations, and individuals to create greener, more livable public spaces. The organization's work includes ongoing maintenance of completed projects such as The Low Line Gardens, Great Shiplock Park, and Hotchkiss Green, as well as new development projects and neighborhood park consultations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Low Line A 5.5-acre urban linear greenspace stretching from Great Shiplock Park to the Richmond floodwall along the James River and Kanawha Canal, designed and stewarded by Capital Trees for public access, with native plantings and a stormwater bio-remediation system beneath the Low Line Green.
• Great Shiplock Park A signature restored public park at the head of the James River and Kanawha Canal, stewarded by Capital Trees as part of its original portfolio of civic greenspaces.
• The 14th Street Initiative One of Capital Trees' inaugural civic-greening projects, focused on streetscape and corridor improvements along 14th Street in Richmond.
• Hotchkiss Green A new urban green and food-forest installation co-located with the Hotchkiss Field Community Center in Richmond's Northside, featuring over 100 trees, 1,300 pollinator-friendly plugs, and fruit-bearing trees and shrubs.
• Canoe Run Park Active restoration project at Canoe Run Park in partnership with the City of Richmond, including invasive kudzu removal and ongoing tree planting and mulching.
• Henrico County Reforestation Pilot Project Pilot reforestation program in Henrico County, extending Capital Trees' stewardship model beyond the City of Richmond.
• Sustaining Our Greenspaces Ongoing maintenance and stewardship program for completed Capital Trees sites, supported by Treekeepers Circle recurring donations and volunteer workdays.
• Guided Tours and Educational Presentations Free guided tours of Great Shiplock Park, The Low Line Gardens, and Low Line Green for families, community groups, and colleagues, with group presentations available on Capital Trees' work.
• Private Group Volunteer Workdays Scheduled private volunteer workdays at Capital Trees gardens for corporate and community groups, used for team building and community service.

Quantifiable outcome

• 148,000 gallons of polluted rainwater captured and filtered annually by Low Line Green stormwater system
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• City of RichmondcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary government partner in public-private partnership model. The City of Richmond collaborates with Capital Trees on greenspace development and maintenance projects including Hotchkiss Green, Canoe Run Park, and neighborhood park improvements.
• Henrico CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner on the Henrico County Reforestation Pilot Project (2023-ongoing), expanding greenspace initiatives beyond Richmond city limits.
• Virginia Capital TrailmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Low Line and Low Line Gardens are situated along the Virginia Capital Trail, serving as an important connection for cyclists and pedestrians using the trail.
• Groundwork RVAmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal partner that teaches youth about urban heat islands. Groundwork RVA's Green Team uses thermal cameras to measure surface temperatures at Hotchkiss Green to assess the impact of trees and plants on urban heat island effect.
• Hotchkiss Field Community CentermajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-location partner for the Hotchkiss Green project. Joint hosting of Earth Day Festival and ribbon cutting celebrations at the community center.
• DeloitteminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate volunteer group that participated in tree care and mulching at Canoe Run Park, demonstrating corporate social responsibility engagement.
• Troutman Pepper LockeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLaw firm that regularly sends volunteer groups for workdays at the Low Line Green, contributing to ongoing maintenance.
• Hunton Andrews KurthminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate volunteer group that participated in building picnic tables and planting at the Hotchkiss Green food forest.
• Breakaway RVAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal cycling organization that met with Executive Director to learn about Capital Trees' role in environmental justice and restoring neglected areas.
• OnePercentForThePlanetminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEnvironmental partner organization - Capital Trees is listed as an approved Environmental Partner in their directory.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Casey Trees: Washington DC-based nonprofit focused on urban tree planting, care, and education. Directly comparable in mission (urban forestry), public-private partnership approach, volunteer-driven planting model, and operating a single metropolitan region.
• TreePeople: Los Angeles-based nonprofit focused on urban forestry, native plantings, and stormwater capture in park settings. Comparable mission around urban canopy expansion, environmental education, and volunteer engagement at city scale.
• Friends of the Urban Forest: San Francisco-based nonprofit that plants and cares for street trees and gardens through community-led neighborhood engagement. Closely comparable volunteer mobilization, urban greening focus, and city-level geographic concentration.

Emerging players

• Plant-for-the-Planet: Global youth-led initiative focused on tree planting and climate justice education. Comparable in the urban-and-rural tree planting mission and youth-volunteer activation model, though it operates at a global scale rather than a single metro region.

Regional players

• Chesapeake Bay Foundation: Mid-Atlantic nonprofit dedicated to restoring the Chesapeake Bay watershed, with strong urban-stormwater and tree-planting programs including in Richmond. Comparable as a regional environmental nonprofit with overlapping urban forestry and water-quality restoration programs that engage similar corporate and individual donors.
• Piedmont Environmental Council: Virginia-based nonprofit focused on land conservation, environmental advocacy, and community resilience across the Piedmont region. Comparable as a Virginia nonprofit working on conservation and community stewardship with overlapping donor and partner networks, though broader in geographic and issue scope.

Broad incumbents

• American Forests: National nonprofit advocating for urban and rural forest conservation with programs supporting tree planting in cities. Comparable mission scope (urban tree canopy expansion) at a national advocacy level rather than a single-city operating model.
• The Trust for Public Land: National nonprofit that creates parks and protects land in cities across the US, with significant greenspace development in urban areas. Comparable in urban parks-and-greenspace development and public-private partnership execution, but operates nationally and at much larger scale.
• Groundwork USA: National network of local Groundwork trusts doing urban environmental restoration including tree planting and greenspace development. Capital Trees is already partnered with Groundwork RVA, making the national body a structural parent comparable for context on multi-city replication.

Others

• City Parks Alliance: National nonprofit membership organization of urban park leaders and city park advocates, host of the Greater and Greener conference where Capital Trees' Executive Director presented. Comparable as a convening body in the urban greenspace sector though it does not itself execute planting or stewardship projects.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/capitaltreesrva
• Xx.com/capitaltreesrva
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/capital-trees-rva

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Capital Trees